The Hebrew scriptures (Old Testament) and the Greek scriptures (New Testament) enjoin the Ten Commandments. Did early Christians keep them? Did the Pharisees keep or actually violate all of the Ten Commandment? Do many rely on traditions of men and mistranslations of scripture as "proof" that they do not need to keep the commandments? Do the two beasts of Revelation 13, the Beast from the sea (King of the North) and Beast from the earth (Antichrist) keep or violate each of the 10 Commandments? What about Simon Magus, Marcion of Pontus, and the "mystery of iniquity" otherwise known ...
Feast of Trumpets & Purpose of the Church
On September 11, 1980 the late Pastor General of the Worldwide Church of God (Herbert W. Armstrong) gave a sermon for the Feast of Trumpets titled 'Trumpets and the Purpose of the Church' in Pasadena, California. After reviewing it, adding more scriptures, and putting in some 21st century updates, Dr. Thiel made this sermon for the Feast of Trumpets for October 3, 2024. Topics covered include "a voice crying out in the wilderness,' the Holy Days, Christian begettal at Pentecost to be born again at the last trumpet, the return of Jesus, purposes of the ...
Trumpets' Offertory
Does the Bible command Holy Day Offerings? Should an offering be taken up on the Feast of Trumpets? If the Church of God is to teach all that Jesus commanded, what about crying out on topics that result in getting "shadow banned"? If the "trend is your friend," do media like radio make sense in this interne ...
Fall Holy Days or Winter Holidays for Christians?
Should you keep Fall Holy Days or, perhaps, instead keep Fall & Winter holidays? Though they partially acknowledge the holy days that come in the Spring, the Greco-Roman Catholic churches and the vast majority of Protestant churches do not keep the biblical holy days that generally occur in the Fall. Do all the biblical Holy Days portray many pivotal events in God's plan? Are the God's Holy ...
Papias, Millenarianism, and Allegory
Who was Papias of Hierapolis? Where is Hierapolis? Is Bishop Papias considered an 'Apostolic Father' by the Roman Catholic Church? What does the 'Orthodox Wiki' say about him? Irenaeus wrote that Papias "was a hearer of John and a companion of Polycarp." While Eusebius wrote that Papius had a great knowledge of scripture, why did he belittle him? Might Papias have tied the millennium in ...
Mystery of Civilization (and Nimrod)
When did civilization begin? Why is the world like it is today? Why do we see prosperity in some places and poverty in others? Did God make humans upright or evil? What If Adam had taken of the Tree of Life? Has human civilization been blinded by Satan? When did humans err? Who was Nimrod? Could he have been known by other names like Ninus, Bel, Bel-Nibru, Belus, Nebrod, Euechoios of Chaldea, Euechoros, Enmerkar, Lord Ni of Marad, Sumerian king Lugal-Banda, Tukulti-Ninurta I, and king Amraphel in Mesopotamia? Did Nimrod and his mother Semiramus establish Babylon and many religious practices that are in the world today? Any connections to ...
Final Phase of the Work: Your Part!
Jesus said that the gospel of the kingdom of God was to be preached to all the world as a witness and then the end would come. Herbert W. Armstrong told of the "final phase of the work," sometimes called the "last phase." Could you be part of that final, last, phase? May it have started in the 20th century or is it for the 21st and the last generation? Was the Philadelphia era or its succession to fulfill Matthew 24:14? Are Christians to do more than "pay and pray"? What about obey? What are some of the ways people are supporting the final phase of the work in the Continuing Church of God? Are the faithful supposed to be able to "instruct many" at the end, as well as be subject to persecution? Is there any ...
The Apple of God's Eye
The late deacon Richard Close put together a message about faithful Christians being the "apple of God's eye." He started out by referring to a line in Gordon Lightfoot's 1976 song titled "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald." The line was, "Does anyone know where the love of God goes ...?" Richard Close wanted his listeners to realize how precious they were to God and how much God loved them. This sermon, by Dr. Thiel, uses Richard Close ...
Truth About Mary, Mother of Jesus
Jesus was born of a woman named Mary in Bethlehem. Was she prophesied in the Hebrew scriptures (the Old Testament)? Did an angel appear to her? Did she make a prophecy about herself that came to pass? Should Mary be called blessed? Was she a "perpetual virgin"? Did Jesus have brothers and sisters? What do we see from the Bible as well as writings from early Christians such as Papias of Hierapolis, Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp of Smyrna, and Melito of Sardis? …
Cults and other Name Calling
What is a cult? What is a heretic? If the Continuing Church of God holds to the original faith once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 3) can it be a heretical cult? Was the Apostle Paul accused of being the ringleader of a cult? Did Jesus warn that people would insult His faithful followers? Do scholars teach that the Greco-Roman Catholic churches have or do not have the teachings of the first two centuries of the Christian church era? Does the ‘Parable of the Sower,’ recorded in Matthew, Mark, and Luke’s Gospel accounts warn that Satan the Devil will try to try people away from the true faith? Was the original church trinitarian? …